Vodafone out of running for Tiscali takeover
June 20, 2008 - Vodafone has pulled out of the running to purchase Tiscali, an Italian ISP with operations in Italy and the UK, according to reports in the UK's Financial Times.
Vodafone reportedly quit the auction process due to disagreements over Tiscali's valuation. Other contenders to acquire Tiscali are British Sky Broadcasting and Carphone Warehouse of the UK, Switzerland's incumbent telco Swisscom and Italian mobile operator Wind. Vodafone had hoped that the acquisition of Tiscali's Italian and UK fixed-line assets would aid its expansion into wireline Internet access and cut churn, as the UK is now the only major European market where Vodafone does not have fixed-line operations.
Tiscali provides IPTV services in both Italy and the UK, with a modest UK subscriber figure of 36,000 as of the end of last year. Total ADSL subscribers for both Italian and UK operations are currently at around 2.5mn. Tiscali had total revenues of €276.4mn for the first quarter of this year and a gross profit of €48.3mn.
|
Latest news 
